I am lifted into a hovercraft as I fade further and further into unconscious. Katniss starts yelling when we're separated, but I can't hear what she's saying. I see her palm clasp on the window and get yanked away. I feel a twinge pain in my arm and my senses fade.
When I wake up in a hospital that is covered in all white and silver. I stretch my whole body, my toes last. Then I stop, shocked. I lift up my sheets find my leg gone I touch the nub where my leg used to continue. Just a little below my knee my skin is a light shade of pink where it is trying to regrow. My arms are hair free and scratch free, even my burns and cuts from the bakery. And so are my scars and bruises from my beatings through out the years.
A nurse comes in with a hot bowl of soup and a piece of bread. I smile and scoop a spoonful into my mouth. The warmness burns, but in a good way. The bread melts onto my tongue. The nurse looks pleased and walks out the door.
I finish my soup and and look around looking for something to do. I see a notepad and pen on a desk across the room. Pulling the covers off, I realize too late that I only have one leg. I fall to the ground, knocking over the table next to me. Another needle is plunged into my neck, and I go to sleep once more.
I wake at the sound of whispering and look to see Haymitch sitting there. Before I can think, words tumble out of my mouth.
"Why did you try and kill me? For days I was laying hopelessly by the river, and you didn't do anything. You were just sitting there watching me suffer, watching me die. But what did you do? You looked away when the cameras pointed at me. You only wanted her to come back. You didn't even try to help me, not until we could both win!" I spit at him, shaking with anger.
He looks at me and simply says, "Katniss wouldn't be here if I hadn't helped her, and that would mean you wouldn't be here either. I look at him and know he's right, and I wouldn't want to be here if Katniss hadn't survived, even if Cato didn't cut me. I lick my lips and ask how Katniss is doing.
"Her attitude is worse, but other than that, she is pretty much the same. But I wouldn't ask if I were you, I got this" he says as he pulls up his shirt sleeve revealing a long claw mark stretching across his arm. "Oh, don't surprise her either, she came at me with a needle on the bedside table. Luckily I have stellar moves, or she would be in big trouble" he says mockingly.
I almost want to laugh, but I don't I keep my face plain like a statue.
"You changed too, I guess," He pats me on the back, takes a swig from his flask, and walks away, leaving me to my thoughts.
Maybe he's right; maybe I have changed. Have I turned cold? How long will it be until I turn into someone like Haymitch, a sever drunk who sits by and watches while a boy and a girl under my watch fight to the death? And not feel bad when they die because I'm to drunk? To drunk to feel, cry, care.
My thoughts are interrupted by a doctor coming in. "Peeta, would you like a prosthetic leg?"
"Will it make me look normal?" I ask, knowing the answer.
"Well, you will be able to walk normally, but you're not going to be able to do everything you used to."
"Oh." I pause thinking, "Yeah, I guess so."
"Good," he says happily. He walks over to his desk and pulls out a long box and opens it revealing a white pole with some straps. He props it up on the side of the bed and helps me get my nub in securely. I stand up and walk wobbly to his desk and back and he smiles. "Good, you may want to practice walking a little, so you look normal for Ceaser Flickerman and the crowd." He stands up, gives me a big toothy grin, and walks away.
I spend the rest of my time in the hospital walking around on my new leg. At the end of the third day, Haymitch comes in and helps me get ready for the interview. I am told to be extra gushy for Katniss, and she will do the same.
As I walk to the elevator, I ask Haymitch why I haven't seen Katniss yet.
"Because they want to see the full effect the game has done for you two," he answers plainly. The rest of the ride is silent.
When we arrive, I am put at one end of the stage, then pushed out as Ceaser says my name. I look around, and the crowd goes wild. Then I see Katniss in a stunning yellow dress. When she sees me, she runs over and hugs me harder than ever before, and I hug her back. This isn't for the camara; this is for us. And she kisses me, my heart racing. I can tell this kiss is real. But when she pulls away, I look into her eyes. No, it was not real, but definitely closer.